Rana Bahadur Shah in the context of "1806 Bhandarkhal massacre"

The Kingdom of Nepal (Nepali: नेपाल अधिराज्य) was a Hindu kingdom in South Asia, formed in 1768 by the expansion of the Gorkha Kingdom, and disestablished and replaced by the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal in 2008. The king of Nepal served as its head of state, and it was also known as the Gorkha Empire (Nepali: गोरखा अधिराज्य), or sometimes Asal Hindustan (Nepali: असल हिन्दुस्तान, lit. 'Real Land of the Hindus'). The kingdom was founded by King Prithvi Narayan Shah, a Gorkha monarch of the Shah dynasty who claimed to be of Thakuri origin from chaubisi.

After the invasion of Tibet and plundering of Digarcha by Nepali forces under Prince Regent Bahadur Shah in 1792, the Dalai Lama and Chinese Ambans reported to the Chinese administration for military support. The Chinese and Tibetan forces under Fuk'anggan attacked Nepal but went for negotiations after failure at Nuwakot. Mulkaji Damodar Pande, who was the most influential among the four Kajis, was appointed after the removal of Bahadur Shah. Chief Kaji (Mulkaji) Kirtiman Singh Basnyat, tried to protect king Girvan Yuddha Shah and keep former king, Rana Bahadur Shah away from Nepal. However, on 4 March 1804, the former king came back and took over as Mukhtiyar and Damodar Pande was then beheaded in Thankot. The 1806 Bhandarkhal massacre instigated upon the death of Rana Bahadur Shah, set forth the rise of the authoritative Mukhtiyar Bhimsen Thapa, who became the de facto ruler of Nepal from 1806 to 1837. During the early nineteenth century, however, the expansion of the East India Company's rule in India led to the Anglo-Nepalese War (1814–1816), which resulted in Nepal's defeat.

Girvan Yuddha Bikram Shah (Nepali: श्री ५ महाराजाधिराज गीर्वाणयुद्ध विक्रम शाह देव; 19 October 1797 – 20 November 1816) also called Girvanyuddha Bikrama Shah, was King of Nepal. Although he was not the legitimate heir to the throne his father, King Rana Bahadur Shah, made him the heir for being the son of his favourite wife Kantavati Jha.

Girvan Yuddha ascended the throne at the age of 1 and 1/2 years when his father abdicated to become an ascetic. He ruled under the regency of Queen Tripurasundari of Nepal and Prime Minister Bhimsen Thapa. He died at age 19 and was succeeded by his young son Rajendra Bikram Shah.

Bhimsen Thapa (Nepali: भीमसेन थापाlisten (August 1775 – 29 July 1839)) was a Nepalese statesman who served as the Mukhtiyar (equivalent to prime minister) and de facto ruler of Nepal from 1806 to 1837. He is widely known as the longest-serving prime minister of Nepal and was inducted into the "National heroes of Nepal" by King Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah.

Born into an ordinary military family in the Gorkha Kingdom, Bhimsen first came close to the Crown Prince Rana Bahadur Shah at an early age in 1785. In 1798, he was recruited as a bodyguard for the King by his father. Thereafter, he rose to influence after helping the exiled ex-King Rana Bahadur Shah engineer his return to power in 1804. In gratitude, Rana Bahadur made Bhimsen a Kaji (equivalent to a minister) of the newly formed government. Rana Bahadur's assassination by his stepbrother Sher Bahadur Shah in 1806 led Bhimsen to initiate investigations into the context in which he ordered the death penalty for ninety-three people popularly known as the 1806 Bhandarkhal massacre, after which he claimed the title of Mukhtiyar (equivalent to prime minister) himself. The death of King Girvan Yuddha Bikram Shah in 1816 at the immature age of 17, with his heir, King Rajendra Bikram Shah being only 3 years old, along with the support from Queen Tripurasundari (the junior queen of Rana Bahadur Shah) allowed him to remain in power even after Nepal's defeat in the Anglo-Nepalese War. After the death of Queen Tripurasundari in 1832, the intrigues of the newly adult King Rajendra, the conspiracies and infightings with the British envoy Brian Houghton Hodgson, Senior Queen Samrajya Laxmi Devi and the rival courtiers (especially the Kala Pandes, who held Bhimsen Thapa responsible for the death of Damodar Pande in 1804) finally led to his imprisonment on false charges of the murder of an infant prince and ultimately his death by suicide in 1839.

The position of the Prime Minister of Nepal (Nepali: नेपालको प्रधानमन्त्री, romanized: Nepālko Pradhānmantrī) in modern form was called by different names at different times of Nepalese history. In the early reign of the Shah dynasty, the Mulkajis (Chief Kajis) or Chautariyas served as prime ministers in a council of 4 Chautariyas, 4 Kajis, and sundry officers. These Bharadars (officers) were drawn from high caste and politically influential families such as the Pande, Basnyat, and Thapa families. The nobility of Gorkha was mainly based from Chhetri families and they had a strong presence in civil administration affairs.

In 1804, a single authoritative position of Mukhtiyar was created by Rana Bahadur Shah which carried the executive powers of nation. Mukhtiyar held the position of head of the executive until the adoption of the title of Prime Minister in November 1843 by Mathabar Singh Thapa who became Mukhtiyar as well as Prime Minister and the Chief of the Nepalese Army. During the Rana dynasty, the position of prime minister was hereditary and the officeholder held additional titles – Maharaja of Lamjang and Kaski, Supreme Commander-in-Chief of Nepal and Grand Master of the Royal Orders of Nepal.